


CURXE

by lovelyairi



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Horror-esque, Other, kinda scary, may be unsettling for some, there's some swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-11
Updated: 2018-04-11
Packaged: 2019-04-21 09:52:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14282367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelyairi/pseuds/lovelyairi
Summary: Kyungsoo turns a blind eye to the strange happenings around himUnaware of the consequences until it is too late





	CURXE

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt #: L25  
> Pairing: D.O Centric  
> Monster(s): Ghost  
> Rating: Teen and Up  
> Warnings: Unsettling  
> Word Count: 13,211  
> Author's Note: This took me a long long time and there was a period where I didn't write it at all, then I finished it within a week. This prompt gave me some pressure since it was my first time writing something that wasn't focused around an otp but I had a lot of fun! Personally, I always enjoy writing kind of eerie stories. Thank you thank you to the mods for being so so friendly and helpful! To the person who submitted this prompt, I really hope I did it justice! I kind of went off the prompt slightly but not much I don't think... either way I hope you enjoy it, your prompt gave me chills and I knew I wanted it.

_Kyungsoo sits alone on a rusted swing in the middle of a playground. The wind is still, yet the seat beside him swings aimlessly as though occupied by someone he couldn't see. The sky above stretches on till the ends of his vision and it’s unnaturally dark, surrounding him in an inky void. His eyes never waver from the view ahead of him, past the sand._

_He recognizes this playground from his childhood. Every neighbourhood had one of their own, but he could remember his pride when telling his friends at school that his had two swing sets rather than just one. Unlike before, his feet reach the ground now, his toes buried in cold sand as he stares blankly._

_Beyond the playground there is a field of grass, along with tall trees that tower overhead. In the distance Kyungsoo can see that there is a sole figure illuminated beneath a blinking streetlight. Although he wasn’t sure how long he’d been sitting here, he was sure that he’d been looking at it the whole time, or was the figure looking at him he wonders._

_Kyungsoo watches as it slowly begins to approach him. Its movement are slow and sluggish as it crosses the long blades of grass, yet not a single piece moves for its footsteps, almost like it was hovering above them. He freezes completely, his body going rigid as he never takes his eyes off of the odd entity._

_As it comes closer and closer, Kyungsoo begins to panic. Something is wrong. His head screams at him, things that he can’t understand and his body remains frozen, like he’s been paralyzed. His eyes widen as it reaches the threshold of the sand and suddenly everything fades to black._

 

The blazing sound of his alarm is what wakes him with a startle. Kyungsoo reaches over and slaps his hand down on his clock, successfully turning it off. With a yawn, he gets out of bed and stretches, neck craning to see that it’s currently 8AM. Once his limbs feel less tense, he makes his bed, smoothing out his duvet and sheets so that when he went to sleep tonight, everything would be pristine.

As he waddles out of his room, he can feel a draft coming from the living room. Half asleep, he pays it no mind and he walks right into the washroom, feet padding on the cold tiles as he closes the door behind him. Kyungsoo stands in front of the mirror and wiggles his toes into the memory foam mat beneath his feet. With tired eyes, he looks over his reflection and sighs before leaning down to wash his face.

When Kyungsoo rinses his mouth and dries his face with a towel he can only look at how deep the dark circles under his eyes are. His skin looks stressed and dull but he couldn’t find the time to worry about his outer appearance. Kyungsoo exits the washroom and turns right, heading straight to the kitchen. Once he steps out from the hallway, he sees a glimpse of the white curtains dancing in the wind. Confused, he steps closer to get a better look and the window above the sink is wide open.

Kyungsoo cautiously makes his way towards the window and without hesitating he pulls it shut, making sure to turn the latch so that it’s locked. He can’t recall having opened it last night, or at all considering it was quite cold outside. Kyungsoo tries not to let the image of the open window bother him, he needed to eat something before heading to work. Being too lazy to cook, he opts for cereal and he sits at the kitchen island as he munches.

As he looks around his empty apartment he considers adopting a cat, maybe then he’d have something to look forward to when he came home. Then again, it wasn’t like he had time to care for a pet, he was at work for majority of his day. Kyungsoo sighs to himself and he quickly washes his bowl and spoon, placing them into his dishwasher that he uses as a drying rack. He slowly makes his way back to his bedroom and heads over to his closet, pulling out a black long sleeved shirt and a pair of black jeans.

Kyungsoo dresses himself and opts for a brown scarf that Baekhyun bought for his birthday at the beginning of the year. He finishes his outfit with a thin jacket perfect for autumn and he grabs his wallet and keys before heading out the front door. The apartment building he lived in was quite old, but it had everything he needed and the location was great. Crossing the carpeted hallways, he heads straight for the staircase since he only lived on the fourth floor anyhow.

Kyungsoo shoves his hands into his pockets and he glances over at the mailboxes, deciding that he’d check his box later that evening after work. As soon as he steps outside, he’s hit with the crisp wind and he shivers involuntarily. He makes his way down the sidewalk, feeling the crunch of the leaves underneath his boots. Kyungsoo lives in a quaint neighbourhood, filled with tall old homes that press up against each other. Maybe he should’ve stayed in Mississauga where the skies were open, rather than Toronto where there is no space for anything.

Nonetheless he admires the Halloween decorations strewn across the people’s homes and he wonders if he should participate in the holiday this year. He was aware of a number of children living in his apartment complex, then again they didn’t go door to door since there was no way of knowing who would be handing out candy. Although, Kyungsoo knew that some of his neighbours kept a small chair with a bucket of candy outside of their doors.

The sounds of the bustling streets disrupt his thoughts and he turns the corner, passing by the local Starbucks that leaves the fresh scent of coffee in his nose. Right next to Starbucks was none other than his own bookstore, one that he co-owned with his good friends from University, Baekhyun and Jongin. Kyungsoo reaches into his pocket for his keys and he unlocks the door, welcoming the comforting scent of books. Their store was more on the vintage side, collecting classics and selling books that were seemingly unknown to the public.

Kyungsoo looks over to the display that Baekhyun had spent his precious working hours on. Their store had a large window with a sill that used to be a spot for people to sit and read. Baekhyun had decided to remove the previous cushions so that they could decorate appropriately for holidays which Jongin had been enthusiastic about. The window sill was currently occupied with hay bales and plastic pumpkins and gourds. Kyungsoo had protested to anything Halloween themed since they’d have to change it again for November.

He’s startled by the chime of the door ringing throughout the store and he turns to see Baekhyun stumbling in with a bright smile on his face and a coffee in his hand. Kyungsoo offers his friend a smile in return and he gets ready to catch the baked good that Baekhyun tosses at him from seemingly nowhere. Judging by the size of the bag, it’s a muffin again today and Kyungsoo can only mumble a quick thank you as Baekhyun makes his way to the staff room.

Kyungsoo takes his place behind the counter and he opens the register before setting up the debit/credit machine for the day. He then makes his way to the staff room to check the fax machine for the invoice of today's shipments. However, before he can enter, Baekhyun appears in the doorway with the stapled sheets of paper waving around in his hand. They both head back to the counter and Baekhyun checks the voice messages.

As the two are setting up, the chime rings once more and this time Jongin is walking in with drowsy eyes and a yawn escaping his lips. He naturally makes his way through the store and towards the staff room with his eyes closed without a hitch. Kyungsoo stretches and he takes a seat on the tall stool, waiting for Jongin to reappear since he was the one who handled the shipments waiting for them outback.

“Good morning Kyungsoo hyung, Baekhyun hyung,” Jongin mumbles through a mouthful of food. As usual Baekhyun had gifted him with a breakfast sandwich since he knew that Jongin woke up too late to actually eat breakfast like Kyungsoo did. Jongin holds open his free hand for the invoice and Kyungsoo hands it over smoothly. He’s not too familiar with it since he handles finances while Jongin handles stock and Baekhyun does communications.

“Ugh I hate Mondays,” Baekhyun groans and he sits himself down in one of the armchairs strewn between the bookshelves. Kyungsoo can only offer him a half hearted smile because he too didn’t like Mondays all too much, for some reason he always felt exhausted at the start of the week. Jongin continues standing by the counter and he eventually leans on it, reading over the invoice while munching away peacefully.

“Wanna go out for dinner tonight?” Baekhyun asks them both and he slumps even further into the armchair before he hears the chime of the grandfather clock they had on the upper floor of their bookstore. He groans and stands before walking towards the front door, taking his time to flip the sign indicating that their store was now opened. Jongin crushes the wrapper of his now eaten sandwich before tossing it into the garbage can by Kyungsoo.

“Sure, I’m craving ramen,” Jongin answers and the two turn their attention to Kyungsoo since he’s always the one who needs convincing. Kyungsoo thinks for a moment wondering whether or not he has anything to eat at home since he won’t have time to stop by the grocery store. His mind wanders to the open window in his kitchen and he shakes his head before clearing his throat.

“Ramen sounds great,” Kyungsoo agrees with the plan and he ignores the look that Baekhyun shoots him. Jongin immediately goes to the back to check out the boxes of books sitting on the floor and Kyungsoo stretches but he doesn’t move. They usually take a moment to sit around until Jongin returns with the books they need to stock the shelves with. Afterwards Baekhyun usually goes to the back room to call the customers who have their books on hold.

There were also the few customers who ordered their books online and had them shipped to the store and it was Kyungsoo’s job to make sure those were organized. Mornings were never busy for them, it was usually around noon when they’d have a number of customers arriving. Evening was by far the busiest time, all the way to closing hours so that meant they needed to kick out customers when they overstayed their welcome.

“Kyungsoo hyung,” he flinches at the sound of his name and he turns to see a pile of books being held out in front of him as well as Jongin’s infamous pout. Kyungsoo dumbly receives the books and he isn’t sure what these are for, he stares back at Jongin with a raised eyebrow and waits for him to elaborate.

“I’ve been calling your name for the past minute hyung, I said that these books will be picked up sometime today or tomorrow. Can you put them in their correct place please?” Jongin sounds a little upset and Kyungsoo is well aware that he doesn’t like being ignored. Kyungsoo didn’t even hear him, had he been so occupied by his thoughts? A snap in front of his face is what brings him back but this time, it’s Baekhyun who’s now standing beside Jongin.

“You’re really out of it today; care to share?” Baekhyun’s voice is laced with concern and Kyungsoo blinks, unsure of why they’re so worried. Everyone blanks out sometimes, it wasn’t like he was the only one. Kyungsoo knows that Baekhyun isn’t the type to back down so he just gives him the best answer he can think of at the moment,

“I had a weird dream last night and it’s been bothering me I guess,” there’s some truth there, he feels no need to mention the open window. Baekhyun seems surprised at the mention of a dream and so does Jongin. Kyungsoo stands from his stool and he squats down to put the books together with the others that haven’t been picked up yet, he makes sure the smaller invoices are wedged between the pages before he does.

“Since when are you bothered by dreams? Is this why you haven’t been sleeping well?” Jongin asks and Kyungsoo guesses the corpse in his reflection wasn’t limited to only him after all. He shrugs and runs his hands down his face before he puts on a smile, trying to make everything seem alright before his friends overwhelmed him with their worry which was usually welcome but not today.

“It was one of those things where you know you had a dream but you can’t remember it in the morning. It’s not a big deal, come on, get stocking,” Kyungsoo finishes with a smile and neither Baekhyun nor Jongin can argue with that. They do as they’re told and a small chime rings throughout when the door opens, Kyungsoo looks up and meets eyes with a young man who looks oddly nervous so he offers a smile,

“Good morning and welcome!”

 

Kyungsoo arrives home promptly at 10PM and he wants nothing more than to lie down and sleep. Baekhyun had given him an earful earlier, rambling on about how Kyungsoo overworked himself and never spent any time with Jongin and him anymore. Kyungsoo had retorted with a quick answer of how they were spending time together at work but Baekhyun had given him a sorrowful gaze, saying that it wasn’t the same.

He sighs and steps into his home, enjoying the silence of it. It’d been a long day and unlike the others, it hadn’t flown by. Kyungsoo waddles towards his bedroom and he pushes open his bedroom door before he immediately freezes. His eyes are wide as they zero in on the mess that was his bed. Quickly, he looks around the rest of his room seeing how there wasn’t a single thing out of place.

Kyungsoo could’ve sworn that he made his bed this morning. There wasn’t ever a morning where he didn’t leave for work without having his bed made. Instead of looking like it was purposely ruined, it looked… slept in. The sheets were only slightly askew but that was enough to make him feel unsettled. A yawn rips through his lips and he decides that it’d be better for him to brush it off for now. It was late and he was tired, maybe he’d forgotten for once?

Kyungsoo shivers and he doesn’t want to think about it anymore. He rushes into his bedroom and pulls out his pajamas and clean boxers before he runs to the washroom and hops into the shower. Brushing his teeth while scrubbing his hair to try to get into bed quicker. His pace falters when he realizes he’s being silly, maybe a draft ran through the apartment and moved his sheets… or something like that. He had work to do, he couldn’t afford to rush off to bed like a child.

Even though he convinces himself with his own words, it doesn’t get rid of the odd feeling he has running around in his stomach. He feels almost nauseous but he swallows it down, those emails aren’t going to written on their own after all. Kyungsoo gets dressed in his pajama set that Jongin gifted him for his birthday this year and he heads to his bedroom with his breath held. With a quick toss of his clothes into the laundry bin Kyungsoo throws himself onto his bed and pulls out his laptop from his bedside night drawer.

He didn’t have a desk of any sort and preferred to sit on his bed or on a cushion on the floor while he worked. Kyungsoo turns on the machine and he’s instantly comforted by the soft whir of the laptop. After waiting for all his usual programs to startup, he goes to his email and searches for the draft order that Jongin sent him. Jongin was responsible for whatever needed to be ordered but it had to go through Baekhyun and Kyungsoo before being sent.

After Kyungsoo gave it a look over, he’d send it to Baekhyun who would make his final comments before sending it back to Jongin who would then order the books. He finishes typing up some corrections on the sheet and when he sends it off to Baekhyun, it’s already past midnight. Kyungsoo groans and he rubs his tired eyes as he turns off his laptop. He doesn’t even bother putting it back in the drawer, instead he tucks underneath the pillow next to him and he closes his eyes.

Kyungsoo falls back into his bed and he searches blindly for his body pillow that was lost in the messy duvet. Once it’s found he wraps his legs around it and tucks it under his chin, snuggling up as his duvet begins to retain his body heat. He yawns and buries his face into his body pillow, hoping that tonight he’d dream of nice things because really needed the sleep.

 

Kyungsoo sits behind the counter at the bookstore with his hand under his chin and his legs crossed on the stool. Baekhyun was currently on a break so he was most likely at the local Starbucks down the street while Jongin was busy packaging books for online shipments. Today Junmyeon and Sehun were working so that meant Kyungsoo had less to do. Well in the sense that he didn’t have to do any stocking on the shelves or organizing since Baekhyun liked to change up their store quite often.

It was another normal day at work and nothing interesting really happened aside from a group of teenagers in their uniforms waltzing in. Kyungsoo had assumed one of two things, either they were skipping school or they were currently on a school trip. He remembered those days, it must’ve been a half day trip if they were still in their uniforms but then Kyungsoo looks up at the clock and sees how it’s already 4PM meaning the girls were done with school for the day. The group of girls were pacing around the store and Kyungsoo could tell they were ogling at Junmyeon and Sehun.

“I’m back! Also, Kyungsoo we really need to change that display,” Baekhyun says as he bursts through the front door, alarming almost everyone inside of the store. Kyungsoo perks up and he looks over to the hay bales and plastic vegetables. Just a few days ago they’d had an argument about whether or not they should change the display, the whole store was against him. Baekhyun wanted to change the display to a Christmas themed one but Kyungsoo had stubbornly refused stating that it was too early.

Halloween had passed and they were now in November but that didn’t mean that it was Christmas already, Kyungsoo wanted to see his autumn decorations for a little longer. Baekhyun walks towards him. Junmyeon and Sehun both pay attention and Jongin appears from the back room moments later. Kyungsoo blinks and he doesn’t know if he’s prepared for another confrontation about the display.

“Literally every store on this street is in Christmas mode, it’s weird that we’re not,” Baekhyun says in a way that leaves no room for discussion and Kyungsoo gets off of his stool. He carefully walks past his friends and he approaches the window to look at the outside world since he usually walked to work with his head down. Indeed, every store across the street was obnoxiously showing off tacky Christmas decorations but it was too early wasn’t it?

“You know what, we’re not arguing about this. Here hyung, take these and switch out the horror classics for some good ‘ol Christmas tales alright?” The moment he turns around, a box is thrusted into his arms and he stumbles back in surprise, looking at Jongin with betrayed eyes. Then Baekhyun hip bumps him out of the way and Sehun makes his way to the display with a box that was labelled ‘Autumn Decorations’.

Kyungsoo can’t really say anything at this point so he pouts to himself and does as he’s told. The other time they’d argued, it had only been them three but with the added help of Junmyeon and Sehun, Kyungsoo had no chance of winning. He sets down the box beside the holiday bookcase and realizes he wasn’t given a box to put the horror books in. Kyungsoo grumbles when he passes by Baekhyun who doesn’t let him get anywhere close to the display.

“Are we putting any of the books on the shelves?” Kyungsoo asks no one in particular when he finds an empty box. They were going to have to go through those someday, it was a bad habit of theirs but they always ignored the boxes. He carries it out into the store and Jongin is currently ringing up a customer while Junmyeon is helping Baekhyun, and Sehun is currently in the corner organizing some books on the higher shelves.

“The horror ones yes, just use your judgment Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun says nonchalantly and he waves Kyungsoo off before he starts humming Christmas music. Kyungsoo returns to the holiday bookcase and he begins plucking off the books one by one, making sure to check each title and cover to see whether or not they’d be all year round appropriate. He finishes easily, since there aren’t that many Halloween related books anyhow.

When he reaches down for the Christmas books, he realizes that not all of these were old. Some of them were new and there were titles that Kyungsoo himself hadn’t seen yet. Had Jongin and Baekhyun ordered these without telling him? He didn’t care all too much since they owned this store as much as he did but he’d appreciate a heads up. Kyungsoo decides to mention it later when it’s only them three and he continues to do his job.

Once the books are all organized nicely on the bookcase, he puts the horror books in a neat pile in the corner so that he could work on them once he’s put the boxes away. Kyungsoo carries everything back to the back room and grabs an extra bit of tinsel that he sees as he heads back out. When passing by Baekhyun, he steals the roll of tape and proceeds to decorate the holiday bookcase with tinsel after he’d removed the fake vines. Kyungsoo’s pleased with himself and he’s about to organize the horror books when Baekhyun pats his shoulder.

“We have half an hour till closing, you can deal with those tomorrow,” Baekhyun says with a smile and Kyungsoo looks at the clock in shock, he could’ve sworn it’d only been 4PM not too long ago. How was it already 7:30PM? Kyungsoo glances past Baekhyun and he sees the magnificent Christmas display that included a Christmas tree that was fully decorated as well as a small village in front of it.

“Begin tallying up the sales Kyungsoo, you can close the register right after. Jongin and I will start sweeping the floors.” Baekhyun pats his shoulder once more and he walks off to the back room. Kyungsoo makes his way towards the counter with his eyes wide in confusion and he can see Junmyeon getting ready to leave while Sehun is mooching off of the free Wi-Fi for a few moments longer.

Kyungsoo sits down in his stool and he does as he’s told. There’s no more customers in the store so he doesn’t have any distractions to keep him from working. And this time, he makes sure that he’s more alert, paying close attention to when both Junmyeon and Sehun say goodbye for the day and he hears the grandfather clock chiming to tell them that it’s the next hour. Jongin is the one to flip the sign while Baekhyun disposes of whatever they’d sweeped up.

“Hey Kyungsoo do you want a ride home? I need to stop by the convenience store,” Baekhyun asks when Kyungsoo finishes his statement for the day. He definitely wouldn’t mind a ride, today wasn’t one of those days when he wanted to wind down from work. He kind of just wanted to shower and sleep. Kyungsoo nods and he makes sure everything is as it should be as he follows Jongin and Baekhyun to the front of the store.

“Goodnight Kyungsoo hyung and Baekhyun hyung, I’ll see you tomorrow!” Jongin leaves first with a bright smile on his face. Jongin usually parked in the employee parking of a restaurant two stores down from them, his friend was a employee with no car and didn’t think much in letting Jongin use his spot. Baekhyun on the other hand, usually parked behind their store. Jongin could technically use it too but he complained about how it was difficult to exit.

Kyungsoo waits for Baekhyun to enter the car first before he does as well, making himself comfortable on the worn seats before realizing he sat on something soft. He searches for it beneath his bottom and when he pulls it up to the light, he recognizes it to be a corgi plushie that Baekhyun got as a gift from his respective roommate and boyfriend not too long ago. Kyungsoo throws it lovingly onto the back seat before he buckles his seat belt.

“How’s Chanyeol by the way?” Kyungsoo’s suddenly reminded of that friendly giant. Baekhyun smiles upon the mention of Chanyeol and he exits the parking lot, turning left before he answers.

“He’s been pretty good, although he seems to be having trouble with work lately,” Baekhyun frowns and he doesn’t say anything else so Kyungsoo can only hum in response and allow the late night radio to grace them with overplayed music. The ride is silent but not stifling in the least, after all they’ve known each other for years now and silence was always comfortable especially since Kyungsoo didn’t speak much to begin with.

“Okay I’m going to run in really quick, do you need anything?” Baekhyun parks in the parking lot that’s practically empty aside from about five cars and Kyungsoo doesn’t really have anything in mind so he shakes his head. A smile spreads on his lips when Baekhyun mumbles something about being quick and telling him to call if anything happens before he rushes inside.

Kyungsoo sits there for about five minutes before Baekhyun is already heading back to the car, a small bag wrapped around his wrist. He enters the car and throws the bag into the compartment in front of Kyungsoo before he begins driving down the neighbourhood. There’s only about two minutes before they arrive at his house so there isn’t much to say. Sooner than later they’re in front of his apartment complex.

“Thanks for the ride Baekhyun, drive safe and I’ll see you tomorrow,” Kyungsoo waves and Baekhyun tells him to have a goodnight. As soon as Kyungsoo enters the complex, Baekhyun is whizzing off into the night. Kyungsoo heads to the elevator this time since he can feel a pounding in his head and he’d rather not collapse on the stairs during this time. He leans against the cold walls of the elevator with his nerves tingling, he hates this metal box.

As soon as the doors slide open Kyungsoo practically flings himself out. Footsteps reaching a jog as he arrives at his apartment door. He unlocks it and lets himself in, locking the door behind him. Kyungsoo takes a second to look around his apartment and he’s thankful absolutely nothing is out of place. He removes his jacket and shoes before making his way to his bedroom, which is also how he left it this morning.

Kyungsoo smiles to himself wearily and he grabs a shirt and a pair of shorts from his drawer before he waltzes to the washroom. He feels oddly at ease as he undresses and steps into the shower that’s cold at first before it heats up. Kyungsoo closes his eyes as he lets the hot water soothe his aching bones and he lets out a sigh as he relaxes. Unlike the other days, today had gone by so fast yet he was twice as tired than he usually was.

Kyungsoo soaks his head thoroughly and he reaches for the shampoo-

“ **HEY!** ”

The shampoo slips from his fingertips and crashes onto his foot as he jumps in shock. Kyungsoo’s chest heaves as his breath becomes erratic and he leans against the shower wall, uncaring of how cold the tiles are against his skin. His hands are shaking and he swallows hard as he tries to understand what could’ve possibly happened. It sounded like someone had just yelled into his ear.

“B-baekhyun?!” Kyungsoo calls out nervously. Baekhyun was the only person who had access to his apartment and maybe he’d turned back because he forgot to tell Kyungsoo something. He shuts off the water and hops out of the shower, ignoring the water that splatters all over the floor. Kyungsoo grabs a towel and he wipes himself down slightly before he wraps it around his waist.

“Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo calls out again and he peeks his head out of the bathroom door, eyes wide as they dart around the apartment. But the thing was, it’s completely _quiet_. The silence was thick and the sound of a pin drop could be heard, it was unsettling. Kyungsoo takes a deep breath and he turns off the bathroom light before he sprints to his room as though he was running away from the dark.

Kyungsoo jumps into his bed not caring about how the water on his skin seeps into the sheets and he covers his head with his duvet, curling up in fear and he prays that he falls asleep.

 

The next morning Kyungsoo is heading towards the bookstore half an hour early. He’s still feeling spooked from last night’s incident and he didn’t feel at ease at his apartment anymore. He also wasn’t able to do any extra work last night so he’d have to catch up while at work. Kyungsoo reaches the store in a hurry and he unlocks the door before locking it behind him. He hurries inside and is welcomed by the comforting scent of books.

Kyungsoo doesn’t drop by the back room and instead rounds the first bookshelf to head towards one of the armchairs in the corner. He’d be hidden here and he really wasn’t in the mood for awkward eye contact with a customer who will wordlessly gesture for him to let them in early. Kyungsoo sends a quick text to Baekhyun telling him to come in early before he opens his laptop and proceeds to work.

Once Baekhyun arrives he’s going to ask him whether he had ties to whatever happened last night. Kyungsoo wasn’t entirely convinced that Baekhyun was responsible but as of now that was the only thing he could rely on. His fingertips move swiftly over the keys as he checks the orders and types up comments or corrections. As Kyungsoo is finishing up his sentence he hears the chime of the door go off and he places his laptop aside as he stands,

“Morning Baekhyun, hey did you stop by…?” Kyungsoo’s voice trails off when he crosses the bookshelf and sees no one. He frowned, sure that he heard the chime go off and when he checks the door it’s still locked. The grandfather clock rings and Kyungsoo turns around in surprise, his blood pumping as the rings echo through the store. Scared, he rushes back to the armchair and resumes his previous position, furiously typing away to distract himself.

Nausea was bubbling in his stomach and Kyungsoo rubbed his hands down his face and up through his hair. He really needed to get more sleep. He’s been feeling so drained lately, and it’s clear he’s not as attentive as he usually is. Kyungsoo turns off his laptop and closes it, throwing it into his bag as the door chime goes off once more. The sound makes him freeze and he swallows hard before standing, cautiously stepping towards the bookshelf.

When Kyungsoo peeks his head around the corner he sees Baekhyun standing there with a confused look on his face. For a moment no words are exchanged between them and Baekhyun readjusts his grip on the paper bag in his right hand before he steps towards Kyungsoo who hasn’t fully revealed himself from behind the bookshelf.

“Hey Kyungsoo, why didn’t you greet me?” Baekhyun says in a bewildered voice and Kyungsoo catches his breath before he accepts the baked good as always. He smiles casually and heads back to the armchair to grab his things before he walks with Baekhyun to the back room.

“I was distracted, was catching up on some work,” Kyungsoo mumbles. Baekhyun’s expression turns into one of sympathy as he hangs up his coat and scarf. Kyungsoo does the same since he hadn’t done so when he arrived and he steals the hook Jongin usually uses for his backpack. Baekhyun sits down at the round table and he pulls out a breakfast wrap from his pocket. Kyungsoo takes a seat across from him.

“You really need to stop working so hard, you don’t own this place alone remember? You’ve got Jongin and I. We all share the burden of the store,” Kyungsoo hates how Baekhyun’s efforts of reassuring him do little to nothing. The load doesn’t lift from his shoulders and the fatigue doesn’t disappear from his skin. However, he nods and he smiles in thanks because he does appreciate that they try.

“By the way, did you drop by my apartment last night at all?” Kyungsoo asks what he originally wanted to and he doesn’t like how Baekhyun looks confused. Kyungsoo crosses his legs and folds his hands on the table as Baekhyun chews on his wrap, almost furiously to finish his mouthful quicker but Kyungsoo gestures for him to take his time.

“I dropped you off after buying candles and then I went right home,” Baekhyun states. Kyungsoo feels his stomach drop and he can see how Baekhyun is starting to sense that something was wrong so he instead changes the topic at hand.

“You stopped by the convenience store to buy candles?” Kyungsoo clears his throat when Baekhyun takes another bite,

“Chanyeol’s birthday is coming up in a few days and I’ll probably forget the candles when I get his cake so I wanted to be prepared,” Baekhyun explains. Kyungsoo leans back with his brows furrowed. Wasn’t Chanyeol’s birthday at the end of November? Why was Baekhyun getting his candles now?

“Why’d you get them so early?” He asks so that he doesn’t have to think so hard and Baekhyun scoffs in disbelief. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone, shoving it in front of Kyungsoo’s face so that he can look at the date and time himself. Kyungsoo scans the screen for a second too distracted by the cute selfie of Baekhyun and Chanyeol before he sees that it’s November 25th.

“His birthday is in two days and we’re nearing December, hence why I wanted to change the displays so badly but _somebody_ wouldn’t let me,” Baekhyun says cheekily and he’s prepared for a snide remark from Kyungsoo but instead he gets nothing but a blank expression. Kyungsoo pulls out his own phone and he looks at the date once more, before he pockets it and sits back.

Was it already December? He could’ve sworn Halloween passed not too long ago. Time had been flowing past him like water flows beneath a bridge and he was getting lost in the waves. Nothing felt right anymore. Kyungsoo rests his head down on the table and he closes his eyes for a second to rest them. He feels a hand hover above his shoulder before pulling away.

“Kyungsoo, we’re starting to get worried about you. Sometimes you seem like you’re barely living,” Baekhyun’s voice falls into a whisper as though he’s afraid to speak any louder, cautious of what seemed like a secret. Kyungsoo lifts his head and he offers Baekhyun a tired smile, he should really stop acting like he’s not tired when everyone can see it.

“The days are just going by really fast and I’m having trouble sleeping,” Kyungsoo admits as he looks at his hands. Baekhyun who appears to have finished his wrap lovingly takes Kyungsoo’s muffin that was forgotten on the other end of the table and he begins unwrapping it. He takes his time as he peels off a piece of the top and dangles it in front of Kyungsoo’s mouth, smiling when he eats it.

“Just like college remember? You always spent all your time on your assignments and barely paid attention to the days passing you by. Do you want to try out some sleep supplements? Chanyeol takes them sometimes, I can pop by the pharmacy next door and pick up a bottle. It’s non prescription,” Baekhyun blabbers on and Kyungsoo continues to accept the hand fed muffin, quite enjoying not having to move right now.

“That’d be great actually,” Kyungsoo speaks through the muffin mush in his mouth and Baekhyun laughs when some crumbs fly out onto the table. He feeds the last of the muffin to Kyungsoo who sits up when he hears Jongin and Sehun coming in together. Baekhyun brushes off the table and pats his back as he guides Kyungsoo into the store.

“Come on now, we have a long day ahead of us.”

 

Kyungsoo walks down the street with his face buried in his scarf and his hands shoved in the pockets of his jacket. Winter was approaching fast this year and the weather was already plummeting into negative degrees. Kyungsoo shivers as an icy wind runs through his clothes and he reminds himself to switch to his winter jacket early this year. He’d rather suffer the teasing from his friends about his large parka than freeze to death.

As he walks through the neighbourhood he realizes that majority of the houses he passes by are decorated with Christmas lights and decorations. How hadn’t he noticed that Christmas season was coming upon them? Maybe Kyungsoo needed to pick up some kind of hobby, knitting seemed like a good idea. It didn’t cost much money and it was time consuming, just what he needed to destress when he wasn’t working.

As Kyungsoo makes his way down the sidewalk he can’t help but wonder why the way back home seemed so long? Or maybe it was because he was walking slower than usual, afraid to return to his apartment. Kyungsoo takes a deep breath and he reminds himself that there was no work tomorrow so he could catch up on his sleep. Lack of sleep was probably what was causing all of this weirdness. His mind wandered to other possibilities but thinking of them would only scare him more.

Kyungsoo’s relieved to see one of his neighbours at the mailbox when he enters the apartment complex. He greets the older woman with a smile and heads towards the staircase feeling a little less worried. Through the small window on the door he also sees another one of his neighbours heading down the stairs, almost bumping into him as they rush through the doorway. Kyungsoo pays it no mind and he steadily heads towards the fourth floor.

Once he exits the stairwell he’s met with the same silence that always welcomed him when he was coming home. It makes him feel uncomfortable almost. It’s too quiet? Not that it was noisy before, but this was like none of his neighbours were even home. Kyungsoo takes a deep breath and refuses to fall any deeper in this path of thoughts. He’d go insane otherwise. With a forced skip in his step he arrives at his apartment and unlocks the door before entering.

The first thing he notices is that it’s _cold_. Kyungsoo let out a shaky breath and he made a mental note to change the thermostat when he woke up in the morning. He really couldn’t care less right now, snuggling up underneath more blankets was always welcome after all. He toes off his shoes and sets down his backpack by the door before removing his scarf and jacket. Kyungsoo organizes his things on his coat rack, moving his winter coat to the top now that it’s much colder.

Kyungsoo doesn’t even bother pondering whether or not he wants to eat dinner. He really doesn’t feel like eating right now and he’s still full from the muffin Baekhyun fed him hours earlier. His body feels heavy and he wants nothing more than to just wash up and go to sleep. Kyungsoo enters his bedroom cautiously and it appears how he left it this morning to his relief. Pulling off his clothes in a hurry he grabs a plain t shirt as well as shorts from his drawers and heads to the bathroom when he’s in comfy clothes.

The bathroom light flickers once as he flips the switch and he gives himself a glance in the mirror before leaning down to wash his face. Kyungsoo scrubs his skin half heartedly with the face wash Baekhyun and Chanyeol gave him for Christmas last year. He dries off his face with a towel hanging on the wall and moves to grab his toothbrush, squeezing on some toothpaste before shoving it into his mouth.

Kyungsoo stares at his dead eyes as he brushes his teeth and he swears he’s exhausted because for some reason the image in the mirror seems to lag? Almost buffering to catch up with him like those stupid games he played with his friends as a child. For a second Kyungsoo moves quickly and slowly, bouts of motion as if trying to throw off his reflection. He laughs at himself and shakes his head at his own ridiculous actions before he continues brushing, frowning when he notices that it continues to follow him.

Kyungsoo stops and he stares at his reflection, his heart freezing when he sees a very familiar smile appear on its lips. The reflection is his own, yet it’s not him because he most definitely is not smiling right now. The eyes are wide and dull, devoid of any emotion while the way the lips are pulled seem as though sewn to smile.

 

_The swing creaks beneath Kyungsoo’s weight as he swings aimlessly, cold wind hitting his face. He can’t move but he knows that this was the same place from his dreams. The sand just as cool, the sky just as dark and the playground just as lonely as it was before. Kyungsoo wonders what brought him back but when he meets the figure beneath the street light his thoughts go blank._

_For a moment everything is still as Kyungsoo stares at the figure. He can’t make out any fine lines as to what it may be, it seems like a shroud of black in the shape of a person but Kyungsoo knows better. He doesn’t even know if he’s breathing as he stares blankly, there’s some kind of pull, as though it was waiting for him to do something._

_Just like before the figure puts him under some kind of spell, where he can’t look away even if he wanted to. Unlike his last dream, the figure moves towards him almost immediately upon meeting his eyes. It doesn’t move slowly this time, progressing across the grass with vigour as if impatient. Kyungsoo’s breath gets caught in his throat as the figure crosses the threshold of the playground, hovering above the sand with ease._

_The closer it comes the more Kyungsoo feels the panic bubbling within him. He wants to scream, he wants to run but he can’t move. The figure stops in front of him and Kyungsoo stares into the darkness with a pounding heart. Something was wrong. Utterly wrong. The figure leans down closer to him, hot breath tickling his ear and Kyungsoo gasps._

 

Kyungsoo’s alarm is what greets him that morning. His movement is frantic as he moves to turn it off, his hands shaking when he realizes that he’s in his bed. He couldn’t recall going to bed last night. Kyungsoo looks over at his bedside table and he notices the bottle of pills that Baekhyun had gotten him, did those have some kind of weird side effects? Maybe that was why he didn’t remember much and maybe it would explain his weird dream.

He sits there for a few minutes, unsure of what was a dream and what had been reality. Kyungsoo then mentally curses at himself for having his alarm on even though Sunday was his day off. If it weren’t for that he would’ve been able to sleep for much longer like he’d intended. Kyungsoo wasn’t the type of person who could fall back asleep once woken, so he can only groan as he gets out of bed and proceeds to the bathroom.

He feels hesitant. The tiles are much too cold beneath his feet and the memory of last night was too vivid in his memory. It was scary, seeing yourself look like a completely different person. Kyungsoo doesn’t want to think about it and he clenches his fists as he looks into the mirror. His breath sits in his lungs as he looks over his reflection in the mirror, only exhaling in relief when his image’s movements line up perfectly with his own.

Kyungsoo continues with his morning routine and the thought that it was all a dream, becoming more and more clear in his mind. He feels relieved and he can swallow any suspicions he has about what’s been happening lately. He dries his face with his towel and heads to the kitchen. The windows are all closed and everything is in its proper place. A small smile appears on his lips and he sits at the counter, eating a granola bar he found in the cupboard.

On Sunday’s Kyungsoo doesn’t really have much to do. He spends his mornings lazing about, then in the afternoon he does some extra work and heads to the grocery store to stock up for the week. But considering he didn’t eat much last week his fridge was still stocked. Once he’s finished his granola bar, he tosses the wrapper in the trash and stumbles over to the couch, sitting cross legged before he turns it on.

For an hour or so Kyungsoo entertains himself with a movie that he found after flipping through channels. Halfway through the movie, he finds himself dozing off, his head falling forward and jumping up as he tries to keep himself awake. Kyungsoo yawns and he guesses he should try and take a nap so he fumbles for the remote that was now lost beneath the cushions and penguin plushies that his friends kept buying him.

Kyungsoo turns off the television and he’s met with his reflection smiling at him in the black screen. Shocked, he drops the remote and stands up in a hurry, stepping far away from the couch as he falls against the wall. Kyungsoo takes inches forward to look at the blank television screen and his blood runs cold when he sees that his reflection is still there, sitting cross legged on the couch even though Kyungsoo was no longer there.

When his reflection looks right at him, Kyungsoo runs. He runs to the door and throws on his coat before he grabs his keys off the kitchen counter, slipping his bare feet into his sneakers before he leaves the apartment. Kyungsoo runs down the hallway the into the stairwell, skipping steps as he dashes out of the lobby and into the streets. His hands frantically work at zipping up his coat when he realizes how cold it is and he passes the neighbourhood and the bookstore in a heartbeat.

Kyungsoo pauses only when he reaches the crosswalks but other than that he rushes as fast as he can down the neighbourhood of familiar townhouses. He turns left and heads up five steps in a hurry before he pounds on the door almost desperately. Kyungsoo doesn’t even know what time it is or whether they were even home but he’s more than relieved when the door opens revealing a disheveled Baekhyun.

“Kyungsoo? What are you doing here?” Baekhyun asks but he doesn’t wait to let Kyungsoo inside, stepping aside so that his friend can enter. Baekhyun closes and locks the door before he looks over Kyungsoo’s state, his coat was messily zipped showing a baggy t shirt and he was wearing his pajama bottoms, not to mention how his hair was all over the place and his face was scared like he’d seen a ghost.

“Hey Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo greets the man sprawled out on the couch with a tight lipped smile and he removes his coat, hanging it up beside Baekhyun’s. Chanyeol mumbles what sounds like a greeting and Kyungsoo sits on one of the stools beside the kitchen counter, not even surprised when Baekhyun sits down right in front of him. Baekhyun doesn’t even say anything, the expression on his face is enough to know that he wants answers.

“Kyungsoo, what’s wrong?” Baekhyun asks after it seems clear that Kyungsoo won’t talk without being prompted. Kyungsoo can only imagine what this looks like, he’s sure he looks like the dead right now. He hates making Baekhyun worried but he really can’t tell if his troubles are even real at the moment, so he tells part of the truth. The part that won’t make Baekhyun think he’s insane at least.

“I think I’ve been spending too much time in my apartment lately, I literally go from work to home, work to home,” Kyungsoo blabbers and he doesn’t really know what else to say but somehow Baekhyun understands him. A soft smile appears on his friends’ lips and Kyungsoo tries not to flinch at the gentle touch on his shoulders, Baekhyun stands them both up and carefully begins to guide Kyungsoo to his bedroom.

“Okay, first you’re going to sleep a little since it’s not hard to tell you barely got any. Then when you wake up we’re just going to hang out a little and give you a little change of atmosphere, sounds good?” Baekhyun has a cheeky smile on his face when he sits Kyungsoo down on the bed. Kyungsoo really has no room to argue because it does sound good, sleep and just spending some quality time together. Anything to keep him from being alone really.

“Sleep well Kyungsoo, I’ll keep the door open so holler if you need us,” Kyungsoo lies down on the bed and snuggles up in Baekhyun’s duvet as his friend heads out the door and down the hallway. Kyungsoo can vaguely hear Baekhyun telling Chanyeol about what was going on and he lets the comforting sound of his friends’ voices lull him to sleep.

 

“Kyungsoo, hey Kyungsoo wake up,” rough hands on his shoulders are what wakes him. Kyungsoo opens his eyes slowly, eyes blinking to adjust to the dim lighting of the bedroom. He can recognize someone above him and upon more blinking he realizes that it’s Chanyeol who’s smiling at him now. Kyungsoo yawns and he sits up with Chanyeol’s help, his eyes still half closed as he stretches.

“Baekhyun wanted me to wake you for dinner, I hope you’re hungry because he made a lot,” Chanyeol grins and he gives Kyungsoo a pat on the back before leaving him alone. Kyungsoo wonders how long he slept for and when he glances at the clock on the bedside table it reads 6:46PM, meaning he’d been sleeping for over 7 hours. He doesn’t necessarily feel well rested but he’s thankful for the much needed rest.

After a few minutes to himself Kyungsoo gets out of bed and he waddles down the hallway, entering the bathroom to quickly relieve himself before he washes his hands and enters the kitchen. Baekhyun is currently standing at the rice cooker while Chanyeol is sitting at the table, his hands tucked between his thighs as he waits. Kyungsoo gives Baekhyun a sleepy smile before he helps place the remaining bowls of rice on the table.

“Slept well?” Baekhyun inquires as they all take a seat. Kyungsoo shuffles closer to the table, his stomach wasn’t hungry per say but the smell of homemade food was always a joy. It was nothing extravagant, simply a stew and side dishes but it was mouthwatering. Kyungsoo rubs his eyes and he nods,

“Pretty well, thanks,” considering he didn’t have any weird dreams he’d deem his sleep a success. Baekhyun seems pleased with his answer and he warmly gestures for them to dig in, to which they do. Things are silent aside from the click of chopsticks and the sound of Chanyeol’s jaw whenever he chews but it’s comfortable and it was something Kyungsoo didn’t know he needed.

When the conversation picks up Kyungsoo finds himself smiling. As usual he doesn’t really have much to say but then again Chanyeol and Baekhyun do it for him. Carrying on the conversation while still being able to include him truly was a gift and he was thankful for them. It wasn’t hard to tell that the sky was dark outside but Kyungsoo didn’t want to leave yet, he wasn’t ready to return to his apartment. However, he knows that he’s overstayed his welcome for today. Plus, he’d gotten plenty of sleep so maybe whatever was happening at home would stop.

“Kyungsoo, do you want a ride home?” Chanyeol asks when he glances at the clock, he continues carrying over the dishes to Baekhyun who is merrily washing them. Kyungsoo sips at his tea and he tries not to mull over the fact that it’s almost gone. He was never one to stay for too long and his friends knew how much he valued his time alone, he was regretting that part of him just a little bit.

“I think I’ll be okay,” Kyungsoo mumbles and he casually makes his way over to the front door. Without hesitation he unlocks the door and opens it, sticking out his arm to feel the temperature. He shudders when the right side of his body is exposed to chilly winds and he immediately shuts the door to preserve his warmth. He turns to Chanyeol and Baekhyun who are both watching him with their lips pressed together, prepared to laugh,

“A ride would be great, thanks,” he says bashfully and Baekhyun clearly hides a snarky comment because he turns his attention back to the dishes. Chanyeol on the other hand heads down the hall, presumably to change and Kyungsoo returns to his tea cup on the dining table. He quickly takes a sip to warm himself up but it only results in the scalding of his tongue. Baekhyun seems to remember something because he quickly rinses his hands and wipes them with a towel.

“Chanyeol? I’ll drive Kyungsoo home, do you mind finishing off the dishes for me?” Chanyeol emerges from the bedroom looking like he hadn’t changed at all and he doesn’t protest. Kyungsoo wants to ask but he knows Baekhyun probably wants to talk to him about something. He finishes his tea and places it into the sink with a wry smile, feeling apologetic for adding to the dishes.

“Thank you Chanyeol, goodnight,” Kyungsoo unconsciously does a small bow and Chanyeol rolls his eyes before pulling him into a hug.

“Don’t be a stranger okay Kyungsoo, see you soon,” Kyungsoo can tell that he wants to say more but he’s also relieved that he doesn’t. He hugs Chanyeol back tightly and nods with a bright smile on his face before he grabs his jacket off the coat rack and puts on his shoes. Baekhyun steps outside first, a low whimper sounding from his throat as the cold wind hits them both. Kyungsoo follows Baekhyun to the car and he gets inside hastefully.

“Fuck it’s cold,” Baekhyun curses and he fiddles with the buttons in his car before a warm heat begins pouring through the vents. Kyungsoo buckles his seatbelt after Baekhyun does and soon enough they’re pulling out of the driveway. Both of them wait for the car to heat up before they can finally relax and Baekhyun puts on the radio, keeping the volume low so that it lulls into mere white noise in the background.

“Chanyeol’s been wondering whether he can work with us or not,” Baekhyun admits quietly and Kyungsoo feels sad that Chanyeol was having that many difficulties with his current job. He’d be more than willing to hire him though, to be honest they were quite short staffed. Junmyeon and Sehun worked part time and the only full time workers were the owners themselves, it wouldn’t hurt to have some extra help.

“Sounds good to me, just send his resume to Jongin and I so we can go through all of the technical stuff,” Kyungsoo smiles and Baekhyun’s tension eases from his shoulders as he exhales. They’ve already arrived at Kyungsoo’s apartment complex and Baekhyun doesn’t notice how his friends’ hand hovers over his seatbelt, taking longer than usual to release himself.

“Well this is me, thank you for today Baekhyun, I’m sorry for being a bother,” Kyungsoo lowers his eyes and he doesn’t flinch when he feels the weight of Baekhyun’s hand on his shoulder. He doesn’t look at his friends’ face though, Baekhyun’s eyes were always too honest.

“Hey, don’t worry about it too much. I’m glad you came to us actually, take care okay? I’ll see you tomorrow,” Baekhyun gives him a ceremonial pat on the back that makes Kyungsoo gasp a little but he can’t afford to get mad when Baekhyun is giving off a million dollar smile. He nods and whispers a simple goodnight before he gets out of the car and heads inside. Kyungsoo watches Baekhyun drive away and he looks over his shoulder, seeing how there was no one in sight.

Tonight he most definitely did not want to endure the horrors of the elevator so he doesn’t hesitate to pass them, opening the door to the stairwell. As usual there’s a distinct scent as well as the muted sounds of concrete walls. It was nowhere near comforting so Kyungsoo moves fast, climbing step after step while trying to keep himself from getting too drained. However the moment he steps on the second floor, the lights from the first immediately go out, one by one.

Kyungsoo’s eyes widen and for a second he pauses, he swallows hard and looks behind him, seeing nothing but inky abyss. Scared, he hastens his pace and climbs faster, running away from the darkness that chases him up the steps. Kyungsoo arrives at the fourth floor in a hurry and he slams into the door due to his speed. He rattles the doorknob frantically but it doesn’t open.

“No no please no!” Kyungsoo’s voice is broken and he whimpers out of fear, shoving his body against the cold metal in attempts to break free. His heart completely stops when every single light in the stairwell shuts off and he’s left in the dark. Kyungsoo feels his blood run cold and he can’t move, he’s absolutely petrified. Kyungsoo’s lower lip quivers and when he looks at his reflection in the muddy glass all he can see is a smile.

He hands shake as the doorknob finally turns and Kyungsoo sprints out of the stairwell without looking back. He curses beneath his breath and is on the verge of tears when his trembling hands can’t hold onto his keys properly. Kyungsoo is too afraid to look back at the stairwell so he prays that nothing was coming after him. After a few minutes of struggling he manages to open his door and he slams it shut violently, locking it in a heartbeat.

Kyungsoo throws his jacket onto the floor and he removes his shoes and socks in a hurry. Without thinking twice he rushes through his apartment and he goes into his bedroom, locking the door behind him before he dives into his bed. Kyungsoo covers his head with his duvet and he tries to keep himself from having a panic attack, inhaling and exhaling as he waits for sleep to claim him.

 

The next morning Kyungsoo takes time to cover every reflective surface inside of his home. He starts with the mirror in the bathroom, making sure to avoid looking at it as he balances on the marble countertop. Kyungsoo drapes over one of his old bedsheets and jumps down, almost slipping on the mat. He then proceeds to cover the television with some of his larger shirts and sweaters since he has no other large articles of fabric.

Kyungsoo heads to his bedroom next, aiming to cover the body sized mirror he has in there. He rummages around in his closet before deciding to just use the top part of his bedsheets and he has to grab a small stool from the kitchen to aid him with covering the mirror. As Kyungsoo reaches upward and tiptoes to cover it from the top. Maybe he was acting rash but last night had been too real to possibly be a mere hallucination so he wanted to take no risks.

Suddenly he hears his drawers being pulled open and clothes go flying all over as the window is ripped open by some kind of force he can’t see. Kyungsoo cries out as he loses his balance and he falls off of the stool, hitting the ground hard. His eyes open and he looks around at the mess in his bedroom, once his gaze passes by the mirror he doesn’t need to stare any longer to recognize that same eerie smile.

Kyungsoo gets off of the floor, ignoring the pain in his elbow and he unlocks his bedroom door. His breath is held as he grabs his keys and puts on his shoes, not wanting to be inside of his apartment any longer. He feels as though these past few days he’s been running more than he’d usually ever run in a year. He doesn’t know what to do though, he can only obey the warning signals going off inside of his head.

He doesn’t go near the staircase, preferring the metal box to anything else at the moment. Kyungsoo fidgets while he waits to arrive on the main floor and he almost runs over the elderly woman waiting for the doors to slide open when he dashes out. He apologizes and slows down into a fast paced walk as he shuffles down the sidewalks towards his workplace. Kyungsoo pulls open the door in a hurry and he enters swiftly, colliding into Jongin who holds onto him in surprise.

“Whoa Kyungsoo hyung, where’ve you been? You’re late,” Jongin gestures towards the clock and Kyungsoo had no idea that he was more than two hours late. His hands shake uncontrollably as he holds onto the sleeves of Jongin’s sweatshirt and he blinks furiously, trying to find the proper words.

“I-I um f-fuck I think my a-apartment is h-ha-haunted,” Kyungsoo stutters and saying his underlying suspicions out loud after all this time makes his knees buckle. He was being haunted. Jongin’s brows furrow and he looks over to Baekhyun who’d been hovering by their side the whole time,

“Sit him down, I’m going to make him some tea. He’s really been overworking himself,” Jongin mumbles the last part and he hands Kyungsoo over to Baekhyun who leads him over to an armchair. Kyungsoo settles down and he clasps his hands together, his knees jittering as he tries his best to calm down. Baekhyun kneels in front of him with a worried look on his face, ignoring the customers who were looking at the scene,

“L-lately I come home to a mess, or my window is open the next morning when I didn’t open it umm I-I see my reflection moving on it’s own and everything went dark and I hear things and-” Kyungsoo stops mid sentence when he sees how Baekhyun’s worry melts into confusion. Jongin returns with a steaming mug and Kyungsoo accepts it with a tired smile on his face, he shrugs and takes a sip, ignoring the burn on his tongue.

“I’ve been umm watching a lot of horror movies lately, they’ve been giving me nightmares,” Kyungsoo coughs and tries to brush it off. This sounded crazy, his friends would think he’s crazy. Baekhyun doesn’t seem too pleased about the shift in topics but he doesn’t say anything as usual, not wanting to pry. He lowers his head as Kyungsoo drinks his tea and Jongin has no idea what’s going on.

“Can I stay over at your place tonight Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo’s voice is hollow and a weak smile forces its way onto his lips. Baekhyun doesn’t hesitate to nod and he stands up, straightening out his legs even though he hadn’t been kneeling for long. Jongin beside them says nothing but Kyungsoo can tell he’s worried. Jongin had two roommates though as well as three dogs in his apartment and Kyungsoo wouldn’t be able to get any rest if he stayed there.

“Spending a night at my place might help you out, you napped well yesterday right?” Baekhyun says with a cheeky grin and Kyungsoo genuinely smiles this time. He takes his time finishing his tea since both Jongin and Baekhyun insist that he does and they proceed to go through another average day at work. Only this time his friends prevent him from doing any actual work, giving him miniscule tasks like organizing the bookshelves or packing the orders for shipments.

Kyungsoo wanted to be able to pull his own weight but at the same time he appreciated the help, he wasn’t sure he could work properly even if he wanted to and the last thing they needed was an error in their finances. So he does as he’s told and he feels relief when they lock the doors and call it a night. Kyungsoo relaxes in Baekhyun’s car and he rests his eyes, revelling in the songs on the radio as they drive back to Baekhyun and Chanyeol’s shared apartment.

Chanyeol greets them at the front door and Kyungsoo assumes that Baekhyun filled him in on the fact that he’d be spending the night with them. Once Kyungsoo enters the cozy townhouse, he notices that there’s a box filled with what looked to be contents of a desk and he flashes a quick look at Chanyeol. Jongin would be the last to review Chanyeol’s resume so Kyungsoo was sure that he’d be working with them soon enough.

The evening goes much like yesterday did, except this time Kyungsoo gives Baekhyun a hand in preparing dinner which was a mixture of yesterday’s leftovers as well as a fresh dish of stir fried chicken. The smell was making Kyungsoo hungry and actually finds himself laughing along to the couple’s banter. He felt a little lighter for the first time in awhile and he hopes that this feeling would last, that the weight on his chest would pass.

During dinner, Kyungsoo does his best to focus on the conversation, putting aside the image of his garbled smile reflecting off the back of his spoon. If he ignored it, it would go away wouldn’t it? He sure hoped so.

Kyungsoo finds himself back in Baekhyun’s bedroom moments later (Baekhyun insisted that he couldn’t let Kyungsoo sleep alone) while Chanyeol is taking a shower. Baekhyun sits beside him, leaning on the headboard while he reads a book quietly. Kyungsoo on the other hand is borrowing Chanyeol’s laptop so that he could catch up on some work he wasn’t able to do at the bookstore. Baekhyun wanted to protest but then again he knows that Kyungsoo liked to wind down with some numbers and calculations.

“Kyungsoo will you really tell me what’s going on?” Baekhyun’s voice sounds sad, almost longing as if he’s tired of guessing. Kyungsoo feels his heart sink and he wishes he could tell Baekhyun everything but he knows that most of it is in his head. There was no use in bothering his friend with what may be just mere hallucinations or nightmares. Baekhyun was definitely going to take it too seriously as well and Kyungsoo didn’t want that. He just wants this to quietly pass by them.

“Baekhyun,” Kyungsoo mumbles, unsure of what else to say. Baekhyun looks at him and Kyungsoo’s eyes widen when he sees his image in the lenses of Baekhyun’s thin rimmed reading glasses. The same unnatural smile appears once more and Kyungsoo’s tired mind reacts violently, smashing his fist into Baekhyun’s face. He feels the regret of his actions too late and the pained sound that comes from Baekhyun when he falls off of the bed is heartbreaking.

“Baekhyun! I’m so sorry, are you alright?” Kyungsoo clambers off of the bed and he kneels beside Baekhyun who’s thrown off his broken glasses and is now clutching his bleeding nose. Kyungsoo looks at the glasses first, sighing in relief when he sees that the frame is broken but the lenses are intact, meaning there was no glass shards to worry about. Baekhyun’s lashes flutter and he points to the top of the nightside table.

“Fuck Baekhyun I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean I just I saw-” Kyungsoo grabs the tissue box Baekhyun was pointing at. He drops the box into Baekhyun’s lap and leans against the bed, tears filling up his eyes as he begins to cry from guilt, fear and overall frustration. Baekhyun dabs his nose and even comically twists two pieces of tissue paper before stuffing them into his nostrils.

“Shh Kyungsoo, I’m okay, it’s not your fault,” Baekhyun speaks as though he doesn’t have a bloody nose and Kyungsoo is hysterical, unable to calm down from all of the stress he’d been bottling up till now. Baekhyun wraps his arm around him, humming a melody that Kyungsoo recalls from his childhood. With Baekhyun’s help they both stand and Kyungsoo sniffles as he watches his friend put away his laptop and book.

Kyungsoo gets into bed after being coaxed by Baekhyun and he sobs as his friend soaks up his tears and snot with a tissue. Baekhyun smiles softly and he makes Kyungsoo lie down, a gentle hand on his forehead to keep him from sitting up. Once Kyungsoo’s cries die down into light sniffles Baekhyun turns off the lamp and he holds his friend dear.

“Shh now, get some sleep, things will be better in the morning.”

 

Kyungsoo sits down on the couch while Baekhyun and Chanyeol sit in front of him, their expressions were almost uncharacteristically serious. Kyungsoo wiggles and tries to hide himself in the cushions of the couch. His friends are both wordlessly speaking to one another through a series of hums and eyebrow raises and he has no idea what any of it means.

“Kyungsoo, you think this is all happening in your head right?” Chanyeol asks and the low timbre of his voice makes the atmosphere feel heavier. Kyungsoo nods and although he hadn’t mentioned everything he did have to tell Baekhyun about why he punched him, it was common courtesy.

“Would it help if we confirmed it for you? You seem to always be in some kind of mental battle, would it help if Chanyeol and I reassured you that none of this is real?” Baekhyun reaches for his phone and he places the device in front of Kyungsoo’s face, brows furrowing when he sees how his friend cowers and closes his eyes. After a moment Kyungsoo opens his eyes again and he sees nothing more than his own disgruntled face in the screen.

“It’s in your head Kyungsoo, you need to sleep more, eat more, talk to us more,” Baekhyun bites his lower lip and he puts his phone away. Chanyeol follows up with a small hand mirror and Kyungsoo cautiously looks at himself, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. He knows that there was much more to these odd happenings, but honestly after he punched Baekhyun he feels fed up with everything.

He’s tired. So tired. This clearly wasn’t affecting only him but his friends as well, and it wasn’t healthy for anyone, especially not himself. Kyungsoo grips his pants tightly and his knuckles turn white as he clenches his jaw. They were right, this was all in his head. Ghosts weren’t real. Not unless he believed they were and frankly he didn’t. Kyungsoo takes a stand and he keeps his head low.

“I’m taking the day off work today, I need to go home,” _I need to face this_. Kyungsoo ignores the calls of his name as he shrugs on his coat and his shoes, he gives his friend’s a smile before he heads back to his own apartment. He doesn’t run and considers taking his time but the weather outside is much too cold so he resorts to a fast walk. Kyungsoo passes by the bookstore without a glance inside and he shoves his hands into his pockets as he stomps down the sidewalk.

Upon arriving at his apartment complex Kyungsoo runs into numerous neighbours who are loitering by the mailboxes, talking idly as he weaves his way through them. Kyungsoo makes sure to give them his greetings and he ignores the shake in his step when he opens the door to the stairwell. He climbs the steps two at a time as he ascends and his breath is held the entire time.

Kyungsoo keeps his head down when he reaches the fourth floor and he makes his way down the carpeted hallway. Once he reaches the corner apartment, his apartment, he unlocks the door and steps inside. The first thing he notices is that it’s cold. Cold to the point his breath is white when he exhales. Kyungsoo removes his coat and shoes, his toes curling in his socks when he steps on the floorboards.

The television was still dutifully covered and he jogs down the hallway to his bedroom to see the damage. But nothing was there. The mirror was covered and his window was shut, the drawers in their proper places and not an article of clothing was in sight. Kyungsoo runs his hands down his face and he worries that he’s actually gone insane. He leaves the bedroom and stands in the hallway with a frown on his face.

Kyungsoo has other things to worry about though and he doesn’t have time to care about what happened in his bedroom. He cares about what had been following him since that first night. Kyungsoo shivers when he enters the washroom and he looks up at the bed sheet covering the mirror. His heart is pounding loudly when he steps up to the counter and his fingertips hesitate as they grab hold of the fabric.

Kyungsoo does a mental countdown and he removes the sheets, his eyes widening when he sees his reflection reaching out for him with a smile.

 

_For what seemed like it would be the last, Kyungsoo finds himself back on the swing within the lonely playground. The wind is still yet it rings loudly in his ears, causing shivers to run up and down his spine. Kyungsoo lifts his head and he doesn’t have a chance to think of anything before he’s frozen, his eyes unable to look away from the figure haunting his dreams._

_He has so many questions, so many things he wants to know but this thing gave him no chance to move let alone talk. Kyungsoo feels cold, the feeling spreading from his toes all the way up his body as the figure comes towards him from its spot beneath the streetlight. Kyungsoo swallows hard and panic arises inside of him once more, he wants this nightmare to be over._

_He wants to wake up safe in his bed with the safety blanket of it all being a dream wrapped around him. However, as it comes closer, Kyungsoo does not wake. When it leans down to whisper into his ear, he does not wake. Kyungsoo remains unmoving as the figure stares down at him at a close proximity, almost too close considering he couldn’t lift his head to look at it. His mind screams at him, screams at him to run, to look away but he can’t._

_The figure squats down in front of him before it pushes the swing holding him, Kyungsoo moves front and back, front and back and the figure claps in amusement. Kyungsoo can feel his heartbeat slowing as the cold spreads and the figure tilts its head before it slowly removes its hood. And all Kyungsoo can see is his own face staring back at him._

 

“Baekhyun don’t you think that we’re being rash? Kyungsoo can take care of himself,” Chanyeol watches as his boyfriend assaults the door with rhythmic pounds and a part of him would suggest using the spare key but he didn’t want to get hit. Baekhyun doesn’t even acknowledge his words and he continues on, determined to get Kyungsoo to open the door.

“There’s nothing wrong with checking up on my friend who’s been acting weird okay? You can’t tell me you’re not the least bit worried about him,” Baekhyun hisses and he looks away from Chanyeol’s stunned expression only to see that the door was now open and that his fist was in front of Kyungsoo’s face. Baekhyun shrieks in surprise and he jumps back into Chanyeol as he hides his hand behind his back.

“Hey Kyungsoo, is everything alright?” oddly enough, Kyungsoo looks absolutely fine. If anything he looks better than he did when he left their apartment. His dark circles have somehow disappeared and his greasy hair was no more. His eyes are dull and his smile is almost too wide but Baekhyun pays it no mind.

“You know you don’t have to fake it if you’re not feeling 100%, you can tell us,” Baekhyun reassures him and Kyungsoo invites them in. Chanyeol closes the door and he looks around, having not been in Kyungsoo’s apartment for some time. Nothing was different, aside from the fact that it was a little cold. Kyungsoo’s heart shaped grin makes an appearance and he’s almost giddy,

“Don’t worry Baekhyun, Chanyeol, everything is okay now,” Kyungsoo sounds enthusiastic and Baekhyun can’t help but feel relief that his friend is okay. He mindlessly believes those empty words, unaware of how everything is _wrong_.

**Author's Note:**

> Some of the scenes in this story were inspired by personal experiences which also made it a little hard to write cause I kept scaring myself ahaha, thank you very much for reading! Please continue to support the fest~ everyone worked really hard <3 I'm glad to have been a part of this, thank you!  
> P.S. Baekhyun honey I'm so sorry  
> Also, this was named after CURXE by Bang Yongguk! Oh and a lot of this was inspired by how my mother often told me that if you stare at a ghost in your dream, you'll never wake up


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